Meeyoung Cha, a computer science professor at KAIST, received this year’s Yumin Prize in the science and technology category on Tuesday at a ceremony at the JoongAng Ilbo building in Mapo district, west of Seoul. (JANG JIN-YOUNG)
Meeyoung Cha, professor of computer science at KAIST, was named winner of this year’s Yumin Awards in the science and technology category, recognizing her work applying mixed AI research to social issues such as poverty and misinformation.
Cha, a chief scientist at the Institute for Basic Sciences, was honored for his many contributions, including to the BACUDA (BAnd of CUstoms Data Analysts) project, a collaborative research project designed with the World Customs Organization (WCO).
With her team, she developed a deep learning algorithm that detects illegal activities commonly carried out to deceive customs, such as smuggling of duty-free goods exceeding the allowed limit, camouflage of goods and false declaration of origin expeditions.
The algorithm has been successfully deployed in Nigerian Customs to detect fraud up to 40 times more effectively than pre-existing methods.
The 44-year-old researcher describes her work as “actionable fundamental science”: it is computer-based, but her results directly illuminate and influence social issues.
Cha also applies big data analysis to satellite images. She developed technology that uses satellite data to generate poverty probability maps at a resolution of six kilometers (3.7 miles) by six kilometers to represent economic activity in countries like North Korea. Unicef cited in its reports its analysis of the correlation between urban green spaces and citizen happiness in developed countries.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Cha was part of a team that tracked global social media to determine the prevalence of misinformation about the virus in 35 countries, with results showing that the same false claims had been replicated in several countries .
She co-organized the Facts Before Rumors campaign, which aimed to stop misinformation before it spread.
Cha was also the first Korean to become scientific director of the Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy last year.
“Many offers of global research cooperation have already been presented,” Cha said. “My goal is to be a bridge between Korea and Germany for global research cooperation. »
Launched in 2010, the Yumin Awards are presented annually to honor “Yumin” Hong Jin-ki, the late co-founder and former chairman of the JoongAng Ilbo, who held numerous positions in government, business and media. These awards recognize Koreans who have made outstanding contributions to society, science and technology, as well as culture and the arts. This year’s event is in its 15th year.
BY CHOI JOON-HO, KIM JU-YEON (kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr)
